Northeast US digs out from brutal snowstorm
New York: Millions across the northeastern United States on Tuesday contended with treks to school and work as they dug out from a major — in some areas record-breaking — storm that blanketed the region with snow, cancelled flights, disrupted transit and downed power lines.
Even as the snow moved north Tuesday, giving way to sunshine in parts of the region, National Weather Service forecasters warned another storm originating in the Great Lakes was right around the corner.
In New York City, more than a million students in the nation’s largest public school system had a regular day, Mayor Zohran Mamdani declared, inviting kids to pelt him with snowballs over his decision.
Many students and their caregivers seemed open to taking the mayor up on that idea, as they
scrambled over mountainous snow banks and dodged salt spreaders during the morning drop-off.
“We’re walking on thin ice here. One more day would’ve been fine,” said Danielle Obloj, the parent of a Brooklyn fifth grader. “They should never have let these kids come back to school.”
Others hailed the city’s efforts at snow-clearing.
“It was much better than last time — an easy commute, no problems whatsoever,” said Raul Garcia, as he exited a cab with his three school-age children. “We thought it was going to be really bad walking, but looking at the streets, they’re so clean.”
Philadelphia switched to online learning on Monday and Tuesday. Districts on Long Island and elsewhere in the New York suburbs said they would cancel school again on Tuesday.
Roads are reopening, and mass transit is coming back online
Monday’s storm, which meteorologists are calling the strongest in a decade, dumped more than 2 feet (61 centimetres) of snow in parts of the Northeast. More than 3 feet (91 centimetres) fell in Rhode Island — surpassing snow totals from the historic Blizzard of 1978 that struck the Northeast, the National Weather Service said.
By Tuesday morning, roads began to reopen, mass transportation was coming back online in some cities, and power had returned for some of the hundreds
of thousands who had lost electricity in Massachusetts, New Jersey, Delaware and Rhode Island.
